Make frosting: Place eggwhites, vanilla, sugar and 1/4 cup cold water in a large heatproof bowl. Whisk to combine. Place bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Using an electric hand mixer, beat eggwhite mixture for 15 minutes or until stiff peaks form.

Step 4

Remove bowl from heat. Beat until cooled.

Step 5

Place blue cake on board. Spread with 1/2 cup frosting. Top with green cake. Repeat with remaining frosting and yellow, pink, orange and red cakes, using 1/2 cup frosting for each layer. Spread remaining frosting over top and side of cake. Sprinkle with 100s and 1000s. Serve.

Ratings & Comments

Ratings & Comments

That was disappointing. I used the "related recipe" to make the butter cake and the 20cm round tin and have just made the first 3 layers. They are only 1 cm high each. I'm going to have to start again with at least double the butter cake mix (ie. total of 4 x recipe provided for whole cake).

4Roslyn0000 added this comment at
12:06pm Mon 11th August, 2014

Very attractive end result and lots of fun to assemble and decorate. I thought it would be a lot harder - will definitely make this again

4.5Thegoodmum added this comment at
09:31pm Sun 8th June, 2014

Very easy for the amazing effect when you cut it open! I used regular food colouring and it was very vibrant (I did use A LOT!)
I was worried the icing wouldn't hold together but it did. It was just enough icing so don't skimp when making and don't use too much between the layers

4.5JulznSean added this comment at
11:59pm Sun 17th November, 2013

I made this for my daughters bday party and everyone loved it.

2.5cacjn added this comment at
05:49am Sat 26th October, 2013

This cake is certainly pretty and my kids did a great job creating it. The main problems is the overly sweet and sickly frosting. A few bites and your done. Would be much nicer with cream in the middle with a butter icing on the outside.

0martinkelly0 added this comment at
05:32pm Sat 3rd August, 2013

This is a fantastic, striking recipe. Have someone handy for the washing up as the different colours make some dishes! It looks awesome and is a hit. I do 7 colours, all the ones of the rainbow, and even make it in a 10 inch tin and doble the recipe.

3.5DLM added this comment at
05:29pm Fri 19th July, 2013

What a fabulous cake! I made it for my daughter's eleventh birthday. Yes, it took a bit of time baking the individual layers but the assembling was fun. It's a gorgeous looking cake as is (I added coloured pearls and glitter decorations) but the look on my gorgeous girl's face when she cut into it was absolutely priceless! Every child at the table was just spell bound as she lifted out a piece and the colours were revealed. Definitely a keeper.

3.5Miz01 added this comment at
12:45pm Wed 3rd April, 2013

Look even though this was a challenging and time consuming cake, it was one of the most delicious cakes i have ever had and one of the funest cakes to cook.
GREAT RECIPE>>> MUST TRY

4.5AllieLycia added this comment at
06:44pm Fri 8th March, 2013

This recipe was great fun. Like some of the comments suggested I halved the icing and I had plenty to cover the entire cake.

3.5kay-dee added this comment at
01:25pm Mon 14th January, 2013

Definitely a kids cake, the icing is incredibly sweet. Next time I will halve the icing mixture as it made so much I could have done 2 cakes and them some! Was a big success though and fairly easy to make although a little time consuming

0allyson29 added this comment at
06:36am Wed 26th December, 2012

i like the great colours and perfect for any occassion

4supercooper101 added this comment at
02:20pm Sun 23rd December, 2012

oh my gosh! i made this for my friends birthday at school, we were a little doubtful of how it would turn out, but when we first cut into it, the rainbow colour was AWESOME! the icing also really makes the cake! although it's a little time consuming to make, its definitely worth it!

4mrssprocket added this comment at
10:19pm Sat 1st December, 2012

I made this cake earlier in the year, but my daughter does not like icing. Instead I whipped cream (sweetened with a little icing sugar and vanilla) and used this for the icing. It made the cake very light and not too sweet (a friend had previously made the cake and found it very sweet)!

4allyson29 added this comment at
06:29pm Mon 12th November, 2012

This looks like a great cake for everyone to enjoy cant wait to try it for friends birthday!!!!

4Clare97 added this comment at
05:36pm Wed 31st October, 2012

This cake was AMAZING !!!! I am in year 9, and as part of a food tech assignment (catering for a party for a 5 year old) we had to make a cake. The theme of my party was rainbow so I thought i'd give this cake a go. It turned out to pretty straight forward to cook although I changed pink for indigo and went in proper rainbow order (leaving our violet). I also found that I only needed half the amount of icing it said to make so I ended up making a kind of meringue cake with the leftover icing. Overall it was a smashing success and everyone loved it. Very high in sugar and additives though ! The best bit is cutting the cake for the first time and seeing the amazing rainbow :P

3jwreno added this comment at
04:30pm Sun 28th October, 2012

Everything turned out really well. I had to use a LOT of food colouring to get a really vibrant colour. The icing took about 25 mins on heat to get a thick consistency.

4MrsSymons added this comment at
05:37pm Fri 12th October, 2012

I used my own butter-cake recipe and did five layers - blue, green, yellow, orange and red. I have to say the meringue icing was DELICIOUS!! I sculpted the cake to make a skirt and stuck a doll in the middle, dusted the meringue with pink edible glitter powder and studded it with silver balls and icing flowers. Most beautiful thing I ever baked! And to top it off, the inside was a stunning surprise. So many comments! Yummy too

4gilliesmg added this comment at
12:28pm Thu 27th September, 2012

This really is a spectacular cake! It is slightly labour intensive, and you will need lots of bench space, but the result is awesome, definitely has the 'wow factor'!
I highly recommend using the meringue icing, although it is sweet, once it sets it does a very good job of keeping the cake in tact and easy to cut.
Enjoy!

5Marina87 added this comment at
07:53am Sat 15th September, 2012

This was super easy to make and looked really impressive, even though you have to make 6 layers it was quite quick to cook as the layers are thin- I used that ready made Betty Crocker icing instead and a little bit of whipped cream in between the layers. I made this for my daughters 5th birthday and was such a hit :) I also stuck it in the freezer for a couple of hours to make it easier to ice.

4.5Bubblyem added this comment at
01:38pm Thu 13th September, 2012

This was a HIT with my workmates. I made it from two packets of butter cake & made 6 layers.
I wasn't very confident of it being successful after it sliding all over the shop when I was layering it, but I was using butter cream icing (not a good choice for this cake's middle layers). A few skewers later I got it all together and in the fridge to set. I did a vanilla cream cheese icing which was a perfect tartness for the uber sweet cake inside.
Will definitely be making this again!

4kezza10 added this comment at
06:34pm Tue 4th September, 2012

Easy to make & it looks awesome when you cut into it. I used betty crocker icing (lots) & it worked well. Decorated it with glitter and white choc butterflies.

4greerkathleen added this comment at
12:54pm Fri 17th August, 2012

This recipe was great. I used two White Wings Golden Buttercake mixes and made 5 layers of cake (not six, I used the leftover mixture to make 4 cupcakes). Although the packet said do not freeze, I made the cakes a week in advance and froze them. I don't know why it says not to freeze them, they were just as good after I defrosted them!
Needed lots of food colouring to get the colours really strong, but it was worth it.
Only problem was I took this to work for a colleagues birthday and it sat on the table all day. The tower like cake didn't last 4 hours before breaking apart due to the height and slippery-ness of the frosting. Really does need to be eaten straight away if possible.
My biggest tip would be to make sure the cakes are completely flat, the slight roundness of the top of the cake needs to be removed otherwise it doesn't really stack up with the icing very well. The sides will drop and it will split straight down the centre.
The icing also takes a while to make, but it's definitely worth it.

4.5Minburgess added this comment at
04:09pm Mon 6th August, 2012

Made this for my sisters surprize birthday party, and was a hit! easy to make, and looked really effective when the first slice is cut (spesh coz i didnt tell anyone it was a rainbow inside) :D

5blinkybum added this comment at
10:19pm Sat 4th August, 2012

I'm gonna make a rainbooww cake

5qwer rated this recipe at
11:14pm Sat 28th July, 2012

4.5millermum added this comment at
08:41am Thu 5th July, 2012

I made this last week for my little one's 7th birthday and it was a HUGE hit...i used 6 eggs and 3 cups of sugar for the icing and had plenty. It is very sweet but was loved by the kids and the adults...Loved seeing her face when she saw the colours inside. Make sure you have a HUGE bowl when making the icing.

3hambly added this comment at
01:31pm Mon 25th June, 2012

I found that there wasn't enough icing to put in between each layer of cake. I used jam to stick each layer together. Tasted fine. It looked impressive. I found that the icing hardened quite a bit after sitting on the plate all afternoon.

3.5Jaimee901 added this comment at
08:15pm Sun 24th June, 2012

Was an 'easy challlenge'.
Needed a HUGE glass bowl for the icing mixture.
Turned out AMAZING! A real winner and masterpiece at the party. Loved by children and adults alike.

4hollybarratt added this comment at
11:53pm Fri 27th April, 2012

This cake is a great idea for any occasion with theme colours. At Christmas you could do red and green layers instead of rainbow, and you could do the same for colours of a sports team, or green and yellow for Australia day etc.

4.5MrsSymons added this comment at
09:25am Thu 12th April, 2012

We made this cake into a skirt for a barbie doll birthday cake. It was absolutely amazing. I did take on a review comment that the icing was too sweet, so put a tangy raspberry jam between the layers instead. I dusted the merangue with edible glitter and it looked stunning. Not only did it look awesome, but it tasted delicious. mmmm

5pepperpotts rated this recipe at
12:56pm Thu 8th March, 2012

5eradva added this comment at
07:05pm Sun 12th February, 2012

Yummmy! did a practice one for my bestfriend's birthday today :) Fairly simple to make too

3.5smanray added this comment at
11:16pm Sun 22nd January, 2012

This cake was a big hit with the family! The cake was very easy to make, but found the icing quantities made way more than I needed. Next time I would use 6 egg whites and only 3 cups of sugar! Was delicious!!!

4dthtl added this comment at
03:12pm Thu 19th January, 2012

The cake was a smash at my sons 6th birthday party! I couldn't wait for him to cut it-it looked (almost) like the picture. I didn't have pink food colouring so I made purple and put that layer on the bottom. The icing was a bit long winded to make, but worth the effort. A fun cake-would make again!

4twest20 added this comment at
10:14am Wed 11th January, 2012

This was lovely I made it for my mums 58th birthday cause she is a sweet fiend it was not as big as I tout it would be but tasted good and looked beautiful

Questions

Questions

Question: In the photo the icing is on the cake in beautiful peaks and I was wondering how to apply the icing so that it will form that way.
Thankyou

DeborahJohns asked
this question at 09:59am Mon 5th August, 2013

Question: The Layered Rainbow Cake is noted to be in SFI Sept 2010, page 24. I'm unable to locate it and I do have that issue. Could you please help me locate this cake. Thankyou Deborah.

admin replied at
10:39am Mon 5th August, 2013

Hello Deborah, The Sept 2010 issue of SFI came with a separate booklet called "Party Time!" attached to the back cover which contained 25 birthday cakes including the rainbow cake above. This recipe was on page 24 of this booklet. Regards, admin

rachelchappell asked
this question at 02:52pm Wed 14th November, 2012

Question: Another question... how many people do you think this would serve? There will be about 30 at the party!

Miz01 replied at
12:48pm Wed 3rd April, 2013

I know this is a bit late..... But it serves around ten to twelve people... so odviusly looking at the date you have already cooked it ... how many people did it serve?

Miz01 replied at
12:48pm Wed 3rd April, 2013

I know this is a bit late..... But it serves around ten to twelve people... so odviusly looking at the date you have already cooked it ... how many people did it serve?

rachelchappell asked
this question at 02:52pm Wed 14th November, 2012

Question: I'm making this for my daughter's birthday. I would like to make the layers in advance and freeze them. How long can it be frozen for? And do i need to make sure it is fully defrosted before I ice the layers?

lauralai asked
this question at 11:11pm Thu 18th October, 2012

Question: I'm making this for my daughters' birthday and have already made 3 layers of the cake and put them in the freezer. I was going to make the icing and put it all together the day before the party but not sure if it will work out. Would I be better off doing a cream cheese frosting if I'm going to "pre-ice" it? And if so, what kind of quantities would I need?
Thanks!

Rackel88 asked
this question at 12:29pm Tue 7th August, 2012

Question: Just wondering about the food colouring... I've read a bit of feedback that it is best to use "gel colours" when making this cake. I'm about to give this recipe a go and only have normal food colouring at home. Has anyone tried either and how much roughly did you need to use? Thanks!

trudy0416 replied at
11:09am Fri 10th August, 2012

I just made this today, used the queens brand food coloring from the supermarket. I used a fair bit do it to make the colors vibrant, but it does work. I also read about the gel colors but didn't want to spend the extra money when I already had the other stuff in the pantry. Just be heavy-handed! It's lots do fun to make and the bowls of brightly colored cake batter looks awesome!

Rackel88 replied at
11:21am Fri 10th August, 2012

Thanks Trudy! I'm making this today/tomorrow for a friends birthday and can't wait to see how it turns out! also... did you use meringue icing? I'm thinking of simply using a butter icing...

Fairyfloss626 asked
this question at 01:02pm Thu 10th May, 2012

Question: can you make this in a rectangle cake tin instead of round tins ??

millermum replied at
08:42am Thu 5th July, 2012

Im sure it would work out just as spectacular..

ellyx asked
this question at 11:59am Mon 30th April, 2012

Question: Is it possible to make this frosting the day before and just keep it in the fridge?

kyliewhite1107 asked
this question at 11:22am Fri 30th March, 2012

Question: Thank you Jacey56 for replying, I was thinking the same thing (that the chocolate frosting wouldn't bring out the colours of the cake) but I like the idea of the cream cheese frosting or buttercream frosting. Thank you again for the advice and I can't wait to try this one either. :)

jacey56 asked
this question at 11:24am Thu 29th March, 2012

Question: Maybe 'white' chocolate frosting as I think that would compliment the colours better. OR maybe cream cheese icing/cream - Philly cream cheese, butter, vanilla & icing sugar. Could be a nice alternative if you don't like meringue. Yummmm can't wait to try this one!

kyliemwhite84 asked
this question at 11:11am Tue 20th March, 2012

Question: This cake looks amazing, and I would like to make it for my mum's birthday that is coming up soon but she's not big on meringue, can I use a chocolate frosting for this or does anyone have any other ideas?, please. Thank you :)